By Erica Ronchetti

For physical therapists and occupational therapists, there are many travel therapy jobs that allow these healthcare professionals opportunities to explore the nation, combining a successful career with their love of travel.  This is the case for Speech Language Pathologists (also known as speech therapists) as well.  As SLP careers become more popular, SLP jobs are becoming more commonplace and traveling SLPs are in high demand.  Facilities need to staff qualified speech therapists to fill short term staffing gaps, a perfect opportunity for non-local speech language pathologists to combine their entrepreneurial spirit with love of travel and advance in their careers.

Many companies specialize in connecting speech therapists looking for work with the hospitals and facilities that are looking to hire SLP professionals on a short term basis, taking into account therapist preferences and needs.  A typical SLP travel job would last for approximately 13 weeks, with the therapist in control of where they work for the duration of the assignment.  Typical travel speech language pathologist salaries are very competitive and usually housing and meals are paid for as well.  There is often a myth about lack of insurance or benefits, but that is untrue.  Along with insurance, frequently therapists may receive bonuses on completion of their SLP travel job.

Some people are required to travel as part of their job, and this can often be somewhat of an inconvenience.  Many speech therapy professionals feel the opposite way, and don’t just take on travel speech therapy jobs for the salary and benefits.  Their love for travel and the opportunity to see the country and explore different cities and cultures is a main motivation for pursuing a career in travel therapy.  If you think a traveling speech therapy job is right for you, don’t hesitate to find out more information by visiting http://www.alliedtravelcareers.com/speechtherapyjobs.php and apply now to get in touch with a recruiter today.  Learn how a SLP travel job can advance your career!

Erica Ronchetti is Account Manager for Travel Nurse Source, a recruiting company for traveling nurses.  Travel Nurse Source is affiliated with Allied Travel Careers, a recruiting company for traveling physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech language pathologists.  For more information on what we do, please visit our websites.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

New Jersey looks to be the 14th state in line to pass an autism treatment bill that will make it mandatory for health insurance companies to cover autism treatments as well as other developmental disabilities. Treatments for autism include speech therapy and speech language pathology. This will increase the already high demand for speech therapists, speech language pathologists, travel speech therapists and traveling speech language pathologists – all integral in autism therapy treatments.

On June 29th, bill “A-2238/S-1651” made its way to the governor’s desk, after passing by a large margin in the Assembly and unanimously in the Senate. The autism bill, following suit with similar such bills in other states, places a $36,000 annual cap on insurance coverage. The bill would require insurance companies to cover expenses related to the screening and diagnosis of autism (and other developmental disabilities), and also includes treatments such as prescribed physical therapy and occupational therapy in addition to speech therapy. Insurers will no longer be able to deny coverage based on the reason that the treatment is not “restorative.”

A study by the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stated that in the 14 states where legislation has been (or is being) passed, one in every 150 children on average is diagnosed with autism. Other states that have recently passed similar legislation, and are likely to have increasing needs for traveling speech therapists, travel physical therapists and traveling occupational therapists, include Wisconsin and West Virginia. Children with autism and other developmental disabilities have multi-disciplinary treatment plans with a strong rehabilitation therapy component, therefore increasing the need for travel therapists and travel therapy jobs in schools and health care facilities nationwide.

Sources: Autism Society of America, IFA Web News

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

There is a big demand for speech language pathologists and speech therapists in the schools to work with children diagnosed with developmental disorders such as Autism (where increased funding is being sought in state after state), with cognitive disorders, and articulation and language impairments. Traveling speech language pathologists and travel speech therapists are also encouraged to seek out these positions in schools.

While educators work to fill these open positions, speech-language pathologists at Kent State University in Ohio are working on an alternate solution to the conventional face-to-face, one-on-one SLP approach. They have started using a method of SLP practice called “telepractice” in various rural schools, as a way of delivering speech and language therapy remotely to students in need. For the pilot program, the students treated experienced articulation, phonological and language impairments. Similar to conventional SLP, the sessions went according to the child’s existing education plan. The difference was that the sessions were conducted between the SLP and child via a website, computer program and special software with an “e-helper” onsite to assist the child (not from a therapy standpoint).  The Kent State SLP’s who conducted the study reported that one disadvantage they noted was reduced communication between the speech-language pathologist and the classroom teacher. They are currently reviewing results, comparing conventional to “telepractice” SLP and planning future studies.

There are similar telepractice and telemedicine program in various other disciplines in other states as well. Travel speech language pathologists and traveling speech therapists may not have immediate access to these types of technological advances in therapy yet. But, there are still numerous opportunities and slp travel jobs to work directly with children in schools who need speech therapy.

Source: Advance for Speech-Language Pathologists & Audiologists

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

As the population ages and requires more complex rehabilitation therapy, the services offered by long term care facilities are moving forward with the times. For example, the roles of physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech language pathologists and their travel therapy counterparts are expanding in nursing homes and other extended care facilities. Rehab therapists in these facilities no longer only care for the long term needs of permanent residents. Skilled nursing facilities also offer transitional therapies for residents that often reside there for thirty days or less. Many patients recovering from stroke, head trauma or other serious conditions are now recovering in long term care facilities. This creates another dimension of patient care for the physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech therapists who work in these facilities.

Rehab therapists working in skilled nursing facilities are also seeing their job descriptions expand. In addition to putting their patients through the paces of conventional therapy programs, all areas of therapy are discovering positive therapeutic outcomes in many new areas of treatment. Some of these areas include alternative medicine (or what was once considered “alternative”) such as pilates, yoga, and tai chi (popular especially in the elderly population). Other treatment areas fall under the category of technology like Nintendo Wii, virtual reality that mimics a patient’s home and computer cognitive training programs.

In addition to adding value to the way they treat patients, therapists and their colleagues at these facilities are also taking advantage of advances in technology to make their own jobs more efficient. Electronic documentation, web based case management software and robotic machines that assist with patient transfers, ensuring the health and safety of staff, are also results of technological advancements. As the advancement of trends in long term care facilities mirrors the demand for new traveling therapists, the need for travel physical therapists, traveling occupational therapists and travel speech therapists is expected to continue rising.

* April 2009, McKnight’s Long Term Care News

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

The voice can be a delicate thing. I learned this from experience in the basketball pep band, screaming it out, and by observation, watching shows like American Idol where contestants frequently “sing out” their voice and vocal chords.  Enter the speech therapist and speech language pathologists and their expert abilities to heal the broken otherwise healthy voice and help repair the diseased or otherwise disabled one. Speech therapists have also been known to help patients stop snoring.  Traveling speech therapists and travel speech language pathologists are also extremely valuable in this regard, seeing and treating patients with voice problems in destinations and clinical settings across the country.

Watching the American Idol auditions, I often wonder if traveling speech therapists could create a valuable service where they go up and down the contestant lines, teaching aspiring idols how to properly use their voices without destroying them for the sake of singing. While this might not be feasible, there is another potential career opportunity for traveling therapists like speech therapists who have a background in singing. “Singing voice specialists” are singing teachers with medical training akin to speech language pathology or speech therapy. They specifically treat and rehabilitate patients with vocal injuries. Most have some type of professional singing experience in addition to the required anatomy training.

Training to become a singing voice specialist is informal and is usually a combination of apprenticeship combined with speech language pathology or speech therapy training. Most of the time it is the singing teacher or professional teacher who adds speech therapy training to their repertoire, but anything is possible for the individual with the medical training and singing talent.

Additional Resources: Voiceproblem.org, National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) – www.nats.org

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

Traveling therapists such as travel speech therapists, travel speech language pathologists, and slp travel jobs seekers in these fields, are responsible for much more than what most people would associate with “speech.” SLP’s work with patients rehabilitating from a stroke and others with swallowing difficulties. Speech therapists also work intensively in one-on-one scenarios helping improve outcomes for autistic children. They are involved in many other treatment situations that involve any of the parts of the upper airway and mouth related to speech. One of the patient groups speech therapists work with is a group that I happen to be quite familiar with: snorers. I grew up adjacent to a symphony of snores coming from my parents’ room and now I am the conductor of my own personal symphony lying in the bed next to me.

Most cases of snoring are mild or non-threatening enough that over the counter and home remedies are enough to manage the situation.  For many Americans, however, the problem or snoring is connected to “obstructive sleep apnea,” a disorder that, if left untreated, puts some individuals at risk for heart attack and stroke due to a lack of oxygen flow during sleep. Speech therapists regularly work with sleep apnea patients, teaching them upper airway exercises that help diminish symptoms and increase the individual’s overall well-being.

The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine’s May 15th issue reported the results of a randomized sleep apnea study, during which some participants were assigned actual speech therapy upper airway exercises while others were given “fake” treatment regimens. The study showed that those who participated in the actual speech therapy exercises experienced improved sleep quality. This study and similar research shows the immense value of speech therapists and traveling speech therapists in working with patients across a broad range of illnesses and conditions.

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

All types of rehabilitation therapists, including traveling physical therapists, travel occupational therapists and traveling speech language pathologists, are integral in the care of special needs children. Music therapy is a form of rehab treatments that is often used in conjunction with occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech language pathology. When music therapy is included as a component of existing treatments, the results often speak for themselves.

Communication and social interaction skills are improved, often because of the similarities and speaking and singing, one part of music therapy. This component of therapy also aids the child’s long term memory retention, since an interested, attentive child learns new skills better. Music therapy benefits the special need child’s motor abilities, since rhythm is correlated to movement and coordination. Utilizing recorded music as a part of rehab therapy also promotes relaxation and decreases muscle tension, making treatment easier for therapist and patient.

The first undergraduate degree program in the U.S. came into being in 1944 at Michigan State University. A degree in music therapy typically requires a therapist to become proficient in guitar, piano, voice, music theory and history, reading music along with a conventional health care and rehab therapy foundation. Music therapy has been known to benefit special need children with autism, brain injuries, Down syndrome, and children with significant developmental delays.

Physical therapist careers and occupational therapist careers working in music therapy are responsible for assessing each individual patients and designing a treatment plan that uses the best methods, whether listening to music, singing, playing or all three, that meet each patient’s objectives.

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

In most U.S. schools, budgets are strained and educators are looking for creative solutions to juggle all the responsibilities on their already crowded plates. Therefore, identifying potential developmental disorders and learning disabilities in children may unfortunately fall through the cracks. This is where physical therapists and occupational therapists and especially speech language pathologists working even part time in schools, can play a critical role in spotting disabilities and positively affecting a child’s future.

Common early childhood developmental disorders include cerebral palsy, hearing loss, mental retardation, vision impairment and the autism spectrum disorders. Funding for autism care is a hot button issue among educators, parents, primary care providers and rehab therapists now. Travel speech therapists and traveling speech language pathologists may soon see the benefits, in the form of increased assignments, from autism treatment funding legislation.  Eight states – Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Texas – have currently passed some form of the bill. Twenty-four additional states have introduced similar bills.

Therapists and traveling rehabilitation therapists working in schools have the experience and knowledge to see things in children that teachers and parents may not immediately pick up on.  Early detection may lessen the severity or slow the progress of developmental disabilities or learning disorders so it is well worth the therapist’s time to conduct thorough assessments and screenings. Traveling therapists in all three disciplines – speech therapy, physical therapy and occupational therapy – are greatly needed in all areas of the country.  Fill out the quick application on our “Apply Now” page to find a traveling therapy agency that best suits your needs and goals.

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN. BSN

Following is part one of my conversation with Ann Marie Ruggiero, Director of Travel Therapy and Recruiting at Medical Connections, another valued travel agency partner of Allied Travel Careers.  I spoke with Ann Marie Ruggiero about her company and the hottest physical therapy travel jobs, occupational therapy travel jobs, and speech therapy travel jobs.

What would you like travel therapists to know about your company?

We specialize in travelers and accommodate our clients the best we can for travel, whether for a typical 13 week assignment or sometimes we do shorter assignments based on their needs.  We also have a permanent placement division.  This is great for therapists looking to stay in a certain area or those looking for something more on the permanent level.

What makes Medical Connections really stand out is our customer service. When someone has initially made that call to us, or we receive an ATC lead, customer service is the number one priority for us.  The travel therapy candidate is in constant communication with their recruiter.  They answer any questions the candidate has about the assignment, benefits, compensation, and any other information we have available for them. The recruiter and candidate keep in contact throughout the entire assignment.  A lot of companies, especially the bigger ones, let you speak to your recruiter at one point before the assignment, but once you are on the job you really don’t have any communication with them. That is the biggest difference between us and the competition.

What would you like rehab therapists (physical, occupational, speech) to know about being a travel therapist?

A travel assignment does not necessarily have to be in another state; it’s anything over 50 miles from your home.  People who have never done travel really don’t know that unless a recruiter tells them; they think they have to go to another state.

What are the most popular states for travel therapy assignments right now?

We have assignments everywhere and here are some examples.  California has the largest amount of needs I have seen in awhile. Texas is also a really hot state right now. So are Arkansas, Louisiana, Hawaii, Georgia, Ohio, New Mexico and New Jersey. How about going to the shore for the summer?  The assignment possibilities are really unlimited. This is a great time for travel therapists to go anywhere they want to work.

Read Medical Connections Travel Therapy Company Focus part two.

Medical Connections
www.medicalconnections.com

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.

By Christine Whitmarsh, RN, BSN

Once again, a popular type of technology is increasing the already high demand for rehab therapists.  Speech therapists, travel speech language pathologists and other speech therapy professionals are starting to observe a high danger of hearing loss in people who enjoy cranking the volume up on their Ipod and other MP3 players.

Media images of ultra-cool celebrities, athletes, musicians or other high profile figures, with Ipod ear buds permanently affixed to their ears have become familiar to the public.  Kids in particular, who tend to look up to some of these figures as role models, may be the most prone to pop in the ear buds (to the point where some parents may feel the need to surgically extract them). Combine the celebrity effect with a young person’s developing sense of hearing and the possibility of future hearing loss is accelerated.  Young people are also more likely to hang out with their MP3 players in noisy environments where they are likely to turn up the volume even more. And since standard ear buds are not very effective in blocking out background noise, the danger of hearing damage increases.

Research has shown that when sensitive eardrums are exposed to sounds greater than 90 decibels for a prolonged period of time, there is a significant risk of gradual hearing loss. The volume on MP3 players ranges between 60 and 120 decibels. The risk of hearing loss in young MP3 users is an excellent opportunity for speech therapists and travel speech therapists working in schools, to provide education and screening for hearing loss. The message that the ear bud generation needs to know: If other people can hear your tunes – they’re too loud!

Christine Whitmarsh is a Registered Nurse with a BSN from the University of Rhode Island. She is a freelance health journalist and medical writer and a contributor to Travel Nurse Source and Allied Travel Careers.